joel's philosophy of ministry

8/8/2019 Joel's Philosophy of Ministry

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Philosophy

OfMinistry

Joel Dorman


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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Foreword .......................................................................................................................................

Table of Contents.......................................................................................................................... i

Introduction.................................................................................................................................. 1

Biblical Foundations ...................................................................................................................... 1

Matthew 22:36-40............................................................................................................... 1

Matthew 28:18-20............................................................................................................... 2

Ephesians 4:11-13 .............................................................................................................. 4

A Healthy Church .......................................................................................................................... 5

Final Thoughts .............................................................................................................................. 6

Appendix A: Worship Wars ............................................................................................................ 8

Appendix B: Discipleship Methodology .......................................................................................... 10

Works Cited ................................................................................................................................ 12


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Jesus could havechosen any of thepurity laws meant tokeep His people set

apartbut He didnot.

Jesus said, I will build my church (Matthew 16:18b). This is the foundational principle

from which anyones philosophy of ministry cannot stray: it is Jesus church. A pastor is not the

churchs Savior; Jesus is. A pastor is not the one purifying the church; Jesus is. Scripture, as the

Word of God, must be the foundation of any philosophy of ministry. Furthermore, the Scriptures

provide the best rubric to evaluate the church. This brief treatment serves as an introduction to my

philosophy of ministry.

Biblical Foundations

At any level, ministry in the church must find itself in the Scriptures. Three passages demand

particular attention as they relate directly to the church, its function in the world, and its leadership.

These are the some of the essential elements for church ministry: Matthew 22:36-40, Matthew

28:18-20, and Ephesians 4:11-13.

Matthew 22:36-40

Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law? Jesus replied: Love the Lordyour God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is thefirst and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor asyourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.

In this passage, Jesus silences His critics once again but germane to this discussion, He

presents His priorities to His people. It is so critical to notice, Jesus could have chosen any of the

purity laws meant to keep His people set apart as witnesses and mediators of His presence to the

world, but He did not. Instead, He chose the familiar opening of the Shema(cf. Deuteronomy 6:5).

Jesus first priority, and therefore the priority of the Father, was love for

Him. Loving the Lord is obedience to the Lord. 1 Samuel 15:22(a)

asks, Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much

as in obeying the voice of the Lord? This underscores the importance

of worship in the life of the Christian and the church. There is an issue

in too many churches of trading worship for something imitating it.

The focus of worship, Webber writes, is not human experience, not a lecture, not entertainment,

but Jesus Christhis life, death, and resurrection.1 Jesus said the Father is seeking worshippers (cf.

1 Robert E. Webber, Worship is a Verb, 2nd ed. (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1992), 1.


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John 4:23). This should immediately cause any Christian to make notes: the Father wants to be

loved by the only part of His creation that bears His image: humanity. This is not simply an emotion;

this is surrender. Jesus said, if you love me, you will obey what I command (John 14:15).2

Since love for the Lord is, by definition, obedience to the Lord, the connection Jesus made to

the second half this passage is also critical: love ones neighbor. Jesus demonstrated His love for the

world (His neighbors) by willingly dying for them (cf. John 3:16-17; Romans 5:8; 1 John 4:10).

Since one obeys the Lord, then by definition, they will love others like the Lord. Loving one

another, Frizzell states, is ofenormous kingdom priority.3 True worship, then, moves the church

to care for the world around them and share the gospel.

It is not an issue of a social gospel. Certainly, the church should be caring for those who

cannot care for themselves, but service projects void of the Gospel are not the mission-oriented

activities to Christ has called us. Jesus did not feed the multitudes only to fill their stomachs.

Matthew 28:18-20

Then Jesus came to them and said, All authority in heaven and on earth has beengiven to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them inthe nameof the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obeyeverything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very endof the age.

These were the final marching orders to Jesus soldiers. Again, because the church loves Him

and obeys Him, the church loves others as He does. This love finds a natural expression in telling the

world about Jesus one soul at a time. The love of Christ in the heart of a Christian creates an

understanding of the power and consequences of sin that compels us to share life with the people

around us.4 It is love for the Lord and His loves manifestation in His church that compels the

church to evangelize. Understanding this connection, the church moves through the world (in both

senses: locally and globally) preaching the good news of Jesus redemption. Evangelism, in all its

importance and significance, is an empty ritual if not motivated by love. A new command I give

you, Jesus told the apostles, Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one

2For discussion surrounding the so-called Worship Wars, see Appendix A.

3 Gregory Frizzell, Releasing the Revival Flood: A Churchwide Journey to Miraculous Unity and God-Glorifying Fellowship(Fulton, KY: The Master Design, 2005), preface.

4 Kenneth Hemphill, Splash(Tigerville, SC: Auxano Press, 2007), 74.


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Guiding that new convert into

maturity in Christ is a lifetime

of work filled with incrediblehighs and, sometimes, bone

rattling lows

Evangelism, in all its

importance and

significance, is an

empty ritual if not

motivated by love.

another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another (John 13:34-

35).

The church has been guilty, at times, of evangelism without its

counterpart: discipleship. This occurs because of too much time spent

emphasizing the wrong thing. When Jesus said, go and make

disciples (Matthew 28:19), the emphasis was not on go but on

make disciples. They were to win the lost to Christ wherever they

would find themselves.5

People are reached and discipled, Robinson writes, one by one, not by masses.6 Jesus did

not spend time on evangelistic methodology as much as He addresses discipleship methodology. In

these verses (Matthew 28:18-20), Jesus tells the apostles and all witnessing the ascension to teach

these new converts everything I have commanded you (Matthew 28:20a). This phrase, in concept

if not in word, is sometimes absent from modern church practice. The reason is simple: discipleship

is the more difficult work to perform. Leading someone to Christ is straightforward. Guiding that

new convert into maturity in Christ is a lifetime of work filled with incredible highs and, sometimes,

bone rattling lows. The church, however, is commanded to provide comprehensive discipleship.

Jesus told us teach the new converts everything He had

commanded. Jesus taught a lot. Most of Jesus teachings

rested on volumes of knowledge already revealed in the

pages of the Old Testament.

When leaders simply command, "go make disciples",

it is echoing a command from Jesus. There is no question: this should be enough to motivate Jesus

followers to action. However, if the commonly offered statistic is true that only four percent of

Christians ever share their faith, one should wonder if the followers of Christ understand their

motivation in fulfilling the Great Commission. A mentor in pastoral ministry offered advice following a

sermon, "tell them 'why' and they will find any 'how'." This concept represents a radical shift in

preaching, teaching, discipleship and evangelism. The "why" of the Great Commission is the Great

5 Craig Blomberg, vol. 22, Matthew, electronic ed., Logos Library System; The New American Commentary (Nashville:Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2001), 431.

6 Darrell W. Robinson, Total Church Life: How to be a First Century Church in a 21stCentury World. (Nashville, TN: Broadman& Holman Publishers, 1997), 155.


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Your job, if you really believe

Ephesians 4:11-13, is to trainyourself out of a job.Tim Searcy

Commandment. It is love for the Lord that creates love for the souls of the world. It is love for the

church that creates the love for discipling them to maturity. Only then can the church achieve the

whole measure of the fullness of Christ (Ephesians 4:13b).7

This lifestyle of love (that is, obedience) to the Father is most capable of fulfilling both the

Great Commandment and the Great Commission. Paul further underscores this need of discipleship

in Ephesians 4:11-13.

Ephesians 4:11-13It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists,and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare Gods people for works of service, sothat the body of Christ may be built upuntil we all reach unity in the faith and in theknowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure ofthe fullness of Christ.

Dr. Tim Searcy made a statement I have never forgotten, your job, if you really believe

Ephesians 4:11-13, is to train yourself out of a job. His challenge has served as a guiding principle

from then through today. His point was not a churchs ability to survive without leadership (although

the ability of a church to continue in ministry through pastoral transition is a sign of health), but a

complete understanding of the role of a pastor in the greater context of the church.

The first thing we are reminded in this passage is found in the first three words it was he.

Jesus Christ Himself provided for His bride by giving her all she needed to accomplish her mission onearth. This verse, then, supports the rest of the New Testament in the same assertion Jesus made:

it is His church. As the groom, He gave these gifts to the church. This is not a methodology of

human invention; its origin was divine.

These specific callings listed here focus on the teaching of the Word of God. A common

theme throughout the New Testament is the danger of false teaching. There is a clear concept,

then, that the teaching of the Word is vitally important to the

church. False doctrine robs a church of its power andwitness. One of Satans most effective tools against the

church is subtle heresy. It started in the garden with four

deadly words: Did God really say? (Genesis 3:1). The church still struggles with the same issue

Eve struggled with that day in the garden: did God really say? Clear teaching of the whole will of

7 For discussion surrounding Discipleship Methodology, see Appendix B.


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If the mission of Jesus wasfinding and bringing salvation

to those who were lost, then

why would the mission of His

church be any different?

God results in one who correctly handles the word of truth (Acts 20:27 and 2 Timothy 2:15).

Teachers of the Word of God have a high expectation from the Master because it is His bride for

which they are caring (and are a part) but additionally, we know that we who teach will be judged

more strictly (James 3:1).

These teachers of the Word of God are to prepare Gods people for works of service so the

congregation is prepared to minister to each other and the world. The result of this equipping is

unity in faith, knowledge of Jesus, and maturity. The goal, then, is mature Christ followers.

Robinson states, the Super-Hired Holy-Man-Syndrome is a dangerous virusspreading among

evangelical churches.8 This is very true and this passage counteracts it. The works of service was

not listed as the responsibility of the apostles, prophets, evangelists, and pastor-teachers, but Gods

prepared people. Subsequently, Dr. Searcys assertion hits the mark: your job [as a pastor]is to

train yourself out of a job.

These three passages provide the foundation for my personal mission statement: through the

empowerment of the Holy Spirit, equip the saints for ministry to the world and each other by

intentional and strategic discipleship motivated by love for Christ and His will.

A Healthy Church

Any organism suffering from disease or injury is

compromised. Depending on the severity of the illness, the

organism might be rendered helpless or unable to care for

itself. Worse case, the injured or ill organism dies. Since

the church is an organism and not merely an organization,

the overall health of a church is of paramount importance to

building a great church. A great church is a healthy church. This presents the obvious question:

how does a healthy church look? Too many churches simply do not ask this profoundly critical

question.

In simplest terms, a healthy church is one that resembles Christ and seeks His will. Christs

mission, in His own words, was to seek and to save what was lost. (Luke 19:10). Humanity was,

and is, lost and utterly without hope unless the grace of God intervenes through Jesus Christ. If the

8 Robinson, 84.


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mission of Jesus was finding and bringing salvation to those who were lost, then why would the

mission of His church be any different? It is not. As previous stated, His final (though certainly not

only) command was to make disciples (Matthew 28:18-20). With this in mind, a healthy church is

not measured by how many people fill their worship facilities on a given weekend, but by how many

disciples are produced who in turn march into the world to continue Jesus mission.

A paramount issue remains in the goal of a healthy church: conflict. Sadly, so many churches

are embroiled with cold wars and open conflicts. Does this have to be normative? I am blessed to

have served in several healthy churches, including the one at which I am currently serving. Likewise,

I have been blessed in serving in unhealthy churches. This is a blessing because the trials of an

unhealthy church make the need for unity so much more apparent. A sick church has essentially no

witness in their community, no waters of baptism being stirred, and no disciples being trained. Their

worship is empty, their song is mute, and their prayer life is nonexistent. These unhealthy churches

need revivalnot a week of services, but a spiritual renewal that changes hearts and lives. They

must move from their sinful state of disunity to a gloriously powerful state of unity.9

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful forbuilding others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. And donot grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day ofredemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along withevery form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other,

just as in Christ God forgave you. (Ephesians 4:29-32)

Only a healthy church is capable of storming the kingdom of the enemy. Only a unified church

can be called great and a great church is, by definition, a healthy, loving, God-worshipping, disciple-

making church.

Final Thoughts

Certainly, there are many questions this philosophy of ministry raises that space simply does

not allow to answer. Some are found in the subsequent appendices, but in all likelihood, these

additional questions are ones of how. As Stanley states, your ministry is perfectly designed to

achieve the results you are currently getting.10 However, the issue of how is always secondary to

why. Additionally, the why question is always best answered not in a cookie-cutter fashion with

9 Although no specific quotes were made, the concept for this section came from Frizzell, preface - 25.

10 Andy Stanley, et al., 7 Practices of Effective Ministry(Colorado Springs, CO: Multnomah Books, 2004), 185.


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a preexisting mold but with a team approach formulated by those on the ground. My philosophy of

ministry, then, is again summarized in my personal mission statement: through the empowerment of

the Holy Spirit, equip the saints for ministry to the world and each other by intentional and strategic

discipleship motivated by love for Christ and His will.


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Appendix A: Worship Wars

Worship is key to a church; it will not thrive without it. As a former worship pastor, I have

been on the front lines of the so-called worship wars and it all stems from two

misunderstandings: focus and fashion.The focus of worship, as explained in the main body of my philosophy of ministry, is Jesus.

He is not a passive bystander but the star of the show. It is through Him we have a bridge to

connect our humanity with the holiness of the divine. Although some try to frame arguments of

preference in terms of Scriptural mandate, Scripture does not dictate musical styles. To do so

amounts to Biblical bullying.

The fashion of worship is where the vast majority of these battles are fought. Issues relating

to musical styles, clothing styles, exuberance verses quietness, are all issues of fashion. If all sideswere unashamedly honest, they would admit: they will never find their hearts music in a different

style than the one they have now. It is a reality of humanity: we are created differently with

different tastes. As such, church must find a way to handle the issues of these fashions.

One methodology is alternative music styles in different services. Certainly, this has helped

many churches with some of these issues, but it is only the first step into the much larger world of

venues. Venues are to churches what stores are to malls. Why do malls have so many different

kinds of stores? People are different, and they want different things. When churches adopt a multi-venue approach, they are not only able to offer the hearts music of more people, they are able to

disarm the issues relating to fashion in worship.

Some might counter this approach is too market-driven. On the surface, the charge appears

legitimate. The answer to this accusation is in two parts:

1. When missionaries go into any culture, they do not impose their native culture to theindigenous people groups. Instead, the missionary learns the language and culture of the

indigenous group and teaches them Biblical truth through their context. If Christians inAmerica are called to be salt and light (cf. Matthew 5:13-14), why would we adopt a different

approach than that which has served missionaries for centuries?

2. People already do this. Why do some attend a certain church and not another? There aresome things about the church resonating with them and some things that are not. In other

words, there are clear reasons why someone is at your church and not the church down the


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street. This does not negate their ministry as there are people who wish to attend there and

not your church. This is the cultural water in which the contemporary church swims.

In conclusion, a thriving church is a church worshiping its Savior and Groom, the Lord Jesus

Christ. With this sustaining focus, the issues surrounding fashion become tools to reach out and

influence the community of churched, unchurched, and dechurched.


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Appendix B: Discipleship Methodology

There are two basic discipleship methodologies: menu-driven and simple (most of the time

referring to small groups).

Menu-Driven Churches

Menu-driven has been the driving force behind the mega-church movement of the eighties and

nineties. The idea was simple enough: provide many religious products in the form of ministries

and programs to meet the felt needs of the congregation and unsaved. In reality, churches have a

natural tendency to drift toward complexity.11 The longer they exist, the more items they add to

the menu. As the menu grows larger, the number of hands needed to keep the menu up-to-date

also grows larger. As the number of hands to keep the menu up-to-date grows, so do their

expectations for promotion, place, and pennies. Soon, these menu-driven churches find themselves

spending large amounts of money on administrative support that exists not for the people in the

programs, but to simply maintain the programs themselves. The constant process of adding new

programs becomes a burden as the church has greater difficulty in keeping new believers on-track

as the options are too great. Additionally, these churches can rarely refuse programs since they feed

the menu and meet felt needs. As such, they keep adding to a menu without limit and quickly find

themselves with a loss of focus, control, and sanity. Furthermore, these churches average under

30% involvement no matter how large their menu is. It seems there would be a better way.

Simple Churches

Simple churches are often not marked by what they offer but why they offer it (if they do at

all). With clearly set boundaries, these simple churches can decide quickly if a program or ministry

serves the calling they have. A church has limitations and simple churches try to accomplish more by

doing less. They focus on key areas and put their energy and resources to those areas. The average

simple church has over 60% involvement. There is profound impact with doing less to accomplish

more. Instead of doing as many programs as possible at a mediocre level, simple churches more

readily specialize and their programs achieve a higher level of excellence through the effort.

Many of these simple churches are known for their small groups (North Coast Community

Church in Vista, California and North Point Community Church in Alpharetta, Georgia are probably the

most well-known although there are thousands of these types of churches across the United States).

11 Stanley, 101.


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These small groups are the path to discipleship for their church. Although the exact definition of

small group might be an issue of debate (on-campus verses off-campus, sermon-based or non

sermon-based, etc.), they are all groups under fifteen people that share life together. Some simple

churches have many of the same ministries of menu-driven churches except they are done in a small

group setting. This is not to say all simple churches are built on small-groups, but a simple church is

one devoted to a simple path from new believer to mature leader.

Lest it go overlooked, simple churches still require administrative support. The sheer

percentage of involvement makes this high level of support necessary; however, the result of this

administrative involvement is very specialized and has greater results. Typically, these churches

need less administrative support overall which makes them more cost-effective, thereby making them

better stewards of the resources the Lord has given them.

Having been involved in both styles, I can safely say the simple church model has many

advantages and certainly nets better results due to its focused effort. Furthermore, the simple

methodology allows the church to use its core values as a decision making tool instead of the drive to

fill a menu with religious services. It helps the church say no to periphery programs so it can say

YES to ministries and programs that will advance the vision God has given them.


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Works Cited

Blomberg, Craig. Vol. 22, Matthew. electronic ed. Logos Library System; The New AmericanCommentary. Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2001.

Frizzell, Gregory. Releasing the Revival Flood: A Churchwide Journey to Miraculous Unity and

God-Glorifying Fellowship. Fulton, KY: The Master Design, 2005.

Hemphill, Kenneth. Splash. Tigerville, SC: Auxano Press, 2007.

Robinson, Darrell. Total Church-Life: How to Be a First Century Church in a 21stCentury World.Nashville, TN: B&H Books, 1997.

Stanley, Andy, et al. 7 Practices of Effective Ministry. Colorado Springs, CO: Multnomah Books,2004.

Webber, Robert E. Worship is a Verb, 2nd

ed. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1992.

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